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A Crisis Not Just of Our Natural Security, But Also Our National Security: A Conversation with Juan Zarate

US Public Radio Series

America Abroad is an award-winning documentary radio program distributed by Public Radio International (PRI) and broadcast on public radio stations nationwide. Each month, we take an in-depth look at one critical issue in international affairs and U.S. foreign policy.

Recent terrorist attacks on Western soil, including the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris and the shooting in Garland, Texas, have galvanized people on both sides of the Atlantic to take stronger action to counter violent extremism in Muslim communities.

“I started growing opium nearby my village, because we were all very poor,” says a man in his 40s, who wants to remain anonymous. He lives in Tonzang, a small town of around 6,000 inhabitants, high above the clouds in the mountains of northern Chin state in Burma. It’s one of the country’s poorest and most underdeveloped regions.

“There are no jobs there that can give you a sustainable income. Many families around us were already growing it and making money from it, so I decided to start too.”